fitness frivolity and culinary wizardry peppered with life musings, fried in adventure.

“The lights are so bright, but they never blind me…”

At this time last weekend, I was slightly buzzed and very disappointed in the lack of selection of deep purple matte lipstick at the Sephora in Times Square. I’d just left a Cajun-style lunch and was headed towards a round of cocktails on West 38th, then dollar pizza before heading back to a hotel room in Queens.

It was a weekend that could only be spent in New York, and it was glorious – it’s also left a bit of a hole in my heart since. Myself, Boy and several of our friends ventured to a hotel in Queens for a wrestling show, during which Lexi and I held belts and figures meant for autographs and marveled at the crowd while the guys met some ring legends. Just so you have an idea of what we got ourselves into, this is what the hotel bed looked like the morning before heading out to the show:

Didn’t mean the girls couldn’t have some fun while we were there though….

After the show on Saturday we grabbed a car into Manhattan and had lunch at Bourbon Street Bar & Grille on West 46th, a bar that was already decked out for St. Pat’s.

I had to get something I couldn’t usually get elsewhere, so a catfish po’boy and wrapped alligator sausage it was!

And, of course, a Bloody Mary! Spicy as hell – and I LOVED it.

We took a detour to Times Square for some shopping before heading to West 38th for drinks at District Tap House. Which resulted in a flurry of selfies of me drinking. I don’t drink much any more. I get a little excited when I do, ok?!

From top left going clockwise: A Manhattan (of course), beer in a wine glass (some stout, the name of which I can’t remember), a Blue Moon with a straw so as not to mess up my lipstick, and a cocktail called a Hemingway (can I get any more cliche as a writer in New York?). These then lead to this photo, which I took after a trip to the basement bathroom and Snapchatted to my 16-year-old cousin.

Lexi and I spotted a $1 pizza place on the corner on our way to the bar, so it was an absolute must we ate there before leaving Manhattan.

I have been deprived of good pizza since leaving NEPA. This pizza in New York was EXACTLY what I needed. More selfies. WHY DIDN’T SOMEONE TAKE MY PHONE AWAY?!

The hotel had called the car that took us into Manhattan, so we needed a way out. Earlier that day I downloaded Uber on my phone and – holy shit – it worked, and it worked FAST. Within two minutes of my placing a call for a car (really, just hitting a button), Jose showed up and took us back to the hotel. A mere $38, compared to the $75 it took to get there. If you can ever Uber, I urge you to do it.

My weekend in the city was amazing. I always get this feeling I can’t describe when I’m there, and it sticks with me for a while. That skyline is still tugging at my heart as I type. All I can think about is living in (or near – shit is obviously expensive_ the hubbub. Exploring each day, in both small and big ways.